


Chingu? Chingu.

by Darth_Rainbow_Queen_Of_Coconuts



Series: JeJin Longshots [1]
Category: The K2, 더 케이투 | The K2 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Can you tell I didn't like the finale?, F/M, UA - Universe Alterations, Universe Alterations, fixit fic, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-10
Updated: 2020-05-10
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:20:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24105070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Darth_Rainbow_Queen_Of_Coconuts/pseuds/Darth_Rainbow_Queen_Of_Coconuts
Summary: Chingu? Chingu. (Friend? Friend.) is my take on the show's finale. Or Kim Je Ha gets a shot at rewriting his fate. Spoiler: He wants Choi Yoo Jin to remain in his life.
Relationships: Choo Yoo-Jin & Kim Dong-Mi, Kim Je Ha/ Choi Yoo Jin, Kim Je-Ha & Choi Yoo-Jin, Kim Je-Ha & Go Anna, Kim Je-Ha/Choi Yoo-Jin, Kim Jeha/Choi Yoojin
Series: JeJin Longshots [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1812865
Comments: 6
Kudos: 53





	Chingu? Chingu.

_The woman chuckled softly, relief washing over her when she saw him. He was alive. There was enough comfort in that knowledge to feel at ease. She would die there, where her life was, where she'd completely abandoned it to him. "Je Ha-ya..." She indulged herself the proximity._

_"We don't have much time, you must hurry out of here." He ushered out, between pants of exhaustion._

_"Forget it. It's too late." The woman replied, a faint smile of acceptance on her features. This was where her fight ended._

_"Hurry! We, we don't have time to waste!" He hurled, like it would change anything. It was flattering in a way, that he still cared._

_"Come on. Let's go." Deputy Jang whispered softly. Softer than he'd directly talked to her in over 12 years._

_"Do I, do I even have a place to go anymore?" Choi Yoo Jin asked, more honest with herself than she'd been in years. "Now... I want to rest a little." She struggled to get the difficult words out, a couple of tears rolling down her cheeks and smearing the remaining make up there before they fell on her lips. Dirty and stick. The taste more chemical filled than salty. Artificial. In ways many aspects of her life had grown to be. Yoo Jin forced herself to reopen her eyes. "With Chief Kim, all of you go." She smiled, eyes falling shut again as she braced herself for a final admission. "I am hopeless."_

_The woman missed the way in which Jae Ha shook his head before it fell. "Hurry. Go." Reopening her eyes, Yoo Jin's gaze traveled from the ever elusive Je Ha to Anna. "Save Anna." She spoke, words coming out far easier than she would've expected. After what she expected had sounded like an order her wolf would follow, the woman gave a final nod to Je Ha, eyes falling shut. Exhaustion seeped in her bones now. Not the usual kind. This, was pernicious, lethargic. Her body knew she was expected to combat it. But her heart, her head, her soul, was ready to give in._

_"Deputy, hurry to the elevator with Chief Kim." she heard Je Ha order_.

_"The elevator is—"_

_"Hurry! Time is almost up!" Je Ha interrupted, having no time for patience nor respect._

_"Just go." Yoo Jin whispered. "Go." She repeated, dropping her formal tone. For some reason she knew foolish but wished not to investigate, relief washed over the woman when the Deputy removed his hand from her wound and chose survival. "Mirror..." Samonim whispered softly._

_"Yes?"_

_"Would it reduce the impact of the explosion if the bomb was in this room?" She inquired softly._

_"Yes."_

_"Would I be able to drag it into this room in my current state?"_

_"Your chances are around 23 percent."_

_"Would I be able to make it out of this room if I dragged it in?"_

_"Your chances are under 0.007 percent."_

_Choi Yoo Jin laughed. "Mirror, would you mind it if we died together?"_

_"Absolutely not."_

_"Great." The woman clutched at her side, forcing herself out of the medical bed and ignoring the pain. She was good at that. She'd done it for so long that it was almost second nature. Chin up, Choi Yoo Jin marched to the doors, and walked down the steps. Dismissing her heels, she lost a second watching the blood smeared on the ground. "No, I suppose I am not happy." She chose to finally reply to her stepmother's question at the funerals. "What does happy even mean?" She went on, taking ahold of the bomb's case. Upon hearing footsteps coming her way, Choi Yoo Jin stilled. "Mirror," she rasped out, exertion already getting to her before she'd made it to the stairs. "Lock the doors to the room. Now."_

_"Yes, Samonim."_

_This was all she could do to protect whomever had chosen to come back for her. The fool. Focusing on the task at hand, the woman relentlessly tugged on the large case, dragging it to the stairs. She loudly coughed, landing on her ass as she made it to the bottom of the stairs. "Mirror..." Yoo Jin tried her hardest not to let her eyes close for too long. "If I drag it with my two hands, can I still make it in?" She inquired._

_"Your chances are around 11 percent."_

_"Good enough." The woman replied, and stood. Her eyes met with the person who stood on the other side of the door, banging relentlessly with nothing but silence to be met with. "Why?" She couldn't help but ask, tears streaming down her cheeks._

_"We're friends." He mouthed, like it explained anything._

_"Mirror," She was weak. "let him in."_

_Je Ha marched inside the room, slow steps, careful steps. "I knew you didn't want to live."_

_"I didn't knew you cared." She replied honesty, as he stood at the bottom of the stairs, a bomb between them._

_"Please, stay alive. It's okay to give in, its okay to surrender, it's okay to come back to me."_

_The woman laughed. "How cruel of you. Then I suppose I must be cruel with you too." She removed her hand from the wound, taking ahold of the cage with the two of them and forced herself to drag it up. He chose to help, lifting up the read as she climbed the final stairs._

_"Mirror, what are my chances of survival?" Je Ha asked._

_"Below 6 percent."_

_"Go." Yoo Jin begged, sitting on the floor, right next to the bomb. "Impact reduced. Go."_

_"Mirror, close the doors." Je Ha chose, in lieu of a reply._

_"Don't do this. Don't be a martyr. Clear your name, live a life."_

_"I've lived a life. It ended when the love of my life died. Then you offered me another. And I'm fairly sure you specified that I had to come back to you. See, following an order."_

_"You're not good at that." Choi Yoo Jin weakly argued. "Why start now?"_

_"Because." The male sat next to her._

_"How elaborate of a reply." The woman chose to indulge herself, head falling on his shoulders._

_"If we'd met under different circumstances..." He chuckled, his eyes falling down on the woman who looked so open now. So desperate and raw. "Maybe then."_

_"Mirror, what are his chances of survival now?"_

_"Under 0.007."_

_The woman chuckled at the irony of the number. Je Ha wondered if she mocked him for caring. She sensed it. "I didn't want to possess you. You, possessed me."_

_"I know." He replied. "I figured it out on the way to the elevator. You lo—"_

_"Don't say it. Please. Indulge me that." Yoo Jin begged, distancing herself from him and sitting up straight._

_Je Ha chuckled, reaching out for her. Gently, he cupped her cheek with a large hand, guiding her gaze back to him. "Yoo Jin-shi." He tried, uncertain until her eyes fluttered shut. Just as carefully, he leant_ in, his lips merely a couple of inches _from hers before he changed his mind and kissed her forehead. Tears streamed down the woman cheeks. Affection. How long had it been since she'd received genuine one? Sighing, Je Ha wrapped his arms around her and whispered : "Keep your eyes closed no matter what. Trust me." He held her tighter when the sounds coming from the device grew more erratic._

_Over. This was over._

~*~

"Jae Ha, are you coming to your senses?" The male blinked a few times, disbelief morphing his features. He nonetheless graced the doctor with a nod. Of course, she whipped her phone out to inform Choi Yoo Jin. Then informed him that Anna stopped by. He knew. He couldn't quite believe he was there still. But, he knew.

"Mirror," the male whispered. "call Madam." His eyes fell on the doctor. "Please, wait outside." She nodded and left the glass room. "Mirror, block all sounds."

"Yes, sir."

Je Ha sighed, awaiting for Choi Yoo Jin to pick up. "I know you're not a alone." He spoke, as soon as she answered. "It's fine. I don't have much to say. Just come to me. Alone first." The male's eyes fell shut as the woman hung up. Would she believe him if he attempted to simply tell the truth? But what was the truth anyway? Sighing, the male desperately tried to come up with a viable tactic. Anticipating regarding what he knew was dangerous. Simply because the change he would attempt could have unseen outcomes. He'd try nonetheless. And attempt not to make things worse to save a single woman.

"I'm here." He heard. "Are you awake?" Jae Ha sat up, to be met with the woman's attempt at a smile. He glanced outside of the glass windows, finding Chief Secretary Kim with the rest of the members of Cloud 9. "Are you well?"

Je Ha chuckled. "Mirror, block the sound." He wet his bottom lip. "Anna, don't send her away. Stop pretending you hate her for a second. And protect her, really protect her. Your house. Your men. Send her there."

Choi Yoo Jin's chin trembled for a second before she blinked. "Why would I do that? She's already going to La Felt, she'd be happy there. I'd make sure of it. You could even join her later."

Je Ha hummed. "Well, would I be able to? Me? The fugitive? You know I wouldn't."

"You could. I'd give you another identity." Yoo Jin shrugged. "Friends do things for one another."

"Are we, friends?" The male asked, lightly tilting his head to the side.

"Yes." The woman replied, in earnest. Carefully, Yoo Jin grew closer, anchoring her eyes in his. "You're my only, friend."

"Good." Je Ha replied, sitting straighter as he looked up to the woman. "Then trust me. Keep Anna close. Send her back to your home."

"Why?" Yoo Jin asked.

"Because I ask you. Because we're friends." Je Ha replied.

"You're cruel." The woman replied, a smile gracing her lips.

"Yet, you always preferred me to the blindly obedient others." The former soldier stated. Because it was fact. Because they both knew.

"Fine." Yoo Jin asked, retrieving her phone. "Chief Kim," Je Ha's eyes fell on the woman, a poorly veiled satisfaction appearing on his features as he watched her features shift. "Anna. Bring her to the house. My house. And protect her at any costs." The male chuckled upon seeing Chief Kim trying to protest. "Go yourself. Hurry." Yoo Jin interrupted. Je Ha had to physically stop himself from waving the woman goodbye. The right corner of Yoo Jin's lips curled up when she noticed the satisfaction in the male's gaze.

"How much more do you trust me?" Je Ha chose to ask.

"Haven't I trusted you enough already?" She asked, brows furrowing as her head tilted to the side.

"You have. You have." The male recognized. "Fine. Bring them in." He laid back.

"Mirror, open the doors." Choi Yoo Jin said. The woman cleared her throat, awaiting for the rest of the people to join them. "Did you get the memory card from Soek Han? Where is it?"

Director Go sighed at Je Ha's lack of reply. "Hey, it's not the moment to take your sweet time."

"About that, I didn't get it to give it to you." Je Ha replied, looking solely at Yoo Jin.

"What are you talking about right now?!" Director Go asked, disbelief coloring his words.

"You punk! To save you we, you have no idea about how much we risked—"

"It's okay." The woman whispered in acceptance. "Then, why did you get it from him?"

"To defeat Park Gwan Soo." Je Ha answered.

"Right. That's why you have to give it to us." Director Go went on.

"But you can't use it to defeat Park Gwan Soo anyway." Je Ha spoke, looking solely at Choi Yoo Jin.

"Why?" Choi Yoo Jin asked, eyes subtly narrowing.

"Because if you reveal this, JB group will collapse too. Beside the consortium, Chairman Choi is the most deeply involved in the project. Therefore, unless you plan to ruin JB Group, you can't expose it, right?"

The woman nodded. "Right. True. Then it can be a mean defense, at least."

Je Ha shook his head. "No." He paused, anchoring his eyes in the woman's. "I didn't get it to defend you either."

"And then?" The woman inquired, the _'why'_ implied.

"This will be the second email between you and me." Je Ha replied. "For Anna and I's safety."

Choi Yoo Jin rose her eyebrows for a second. This made no sense. They'd established prior that they were friends. That she would do a lot for him, including bet her life. Without any threats. He knew better, than to threaten her. He knew he didn't need to. _Then why?_

_What are you doing? Samonim's eyes seem to ask._

_Trust me. Je Ha intended to reply. Please. He begged with his eyes._

But the heartbreak he saw in Choi Yoo Jin's dark orbs, made him doubt she believed in him still. They held each other's gaze for several seconds. And even when others exited, she remained. Perhaps to prove to him that she wouldn't take back her words regarding Anna's safety in her own home.

"Then, was it to destroy me?" Choi Yoo Jin asked, standing a couple of feet away from his bed. So she hadn't understood. Je Ha dared not to face her gaze, keeping his glance into the distance. Too many fibers in him yelled to tell her, to reassure her. He couldn't. All he had was conjectures and hopes. Pipe dreams. "That was it." She went on, thinking on her own. Breaking her own heart so someone else wouldn't get to. He kept looking ahead. "But why?" She asked, searching for an answer in ever elusive eyes. "You are my friend, aren't you?"

"Have you ever cried from feeling pitiful?" Je Ha asked. "I know your life is filled with tears for yourself. But have you ever cried for someone else? Because you felt, for them?"

Choi Yoo Jin looked away when he finally glanced her ways. "There are some things too difficult to look at." She replied. "Why would I search for mirrors of my own pain? What is the gain there? So I can cry with someone? So I can comfort them?" She laughed, bitter and wild. "I still am seeking solace from my own pain. I cannot burden myself with someone else's when I barely can walk every day carrying my own."

Je Ha sighed deeply. It's funny how altering the dialogue just a little gets you a completely different reply. Closing his eyes, the male remembered a prior conversation with the woman. About having been innocent once. "Will you be happy, if you succeed?"

Choi Yoo Jin chuckled, spinning on her feet. "What even is happiness? I will have money. And power. Those are concrete. But a fleeting feeling that nobody can actually keep and everybody spends their whole life fighting for? That's a war not worth a single battle. I have too many real enemies to fight for a chimera."

"So you think pipe dreams are not worth the battle for?" Je Ha asked, looking at the woman's back as tears welled in his eyes.

Choi Yoo Jin turned to face him again. "What? No. I make other people's pipe dreams a reality." She chuckled. "Look at my husband. He'll be president. Because he has me."

The former soldier's eyes fell shut. "What about you? Me? Seong Gyu? Mi Ran? The cooking ahjumma?"

"They'll be fine. You, will be fine. I can make those pipe dreams come true. Whatever they are. As long as I'm alive." Choi Yoo Jin honestly replied.

"Are you asking for the memory card right now?" Je Ha asked, a certain disbelief in his tone.

"No." The woman replied. "I know better than to think I can change your mind." She smiled, faint and guarded. "I can still pull strings from here. Right now."

Je Ha sighed. He knew what was coming. "No need." The former soldier replied. "Just stand straight."

"Why? Are enemies watching." The woman asked, remembering the words spoken at the funerals.

"If I can, I'll bring you an umbrella." He spoke, as the doors of Cloud 9 slid open.

"Wow, this place is really cool." Choi Sung Woo spoke, brightness in his face as he laughed.

"Mirror, lock the door." Yoo Jin spoke, as her brother climbed up the stairs leading to her. Samonim narrowed her eyes as she watched the man gesticulate in front of the doors.

"That's a bomb." Je Ha spoke.

"That son of a bitch." Choi Yoo Jin let out through gritted teeth.

"A bomb that can't be disarmed." Je Ha whispered, swallowing thickly. That bomb, could destroy Mirror and finally free Choi Yoo Jin from Cloud Nine. For good. Perhaps then, he should let fate run its course.

"Mirror, turn on the outside speakers." Samonim requested.

"Please, speak." Mirror replied.

Choi Yoo Jin stood straight, chin up as she marched to the glass doors. "What are you doing here?" She chose to ask. "You didn't even call ahead." She went on, eyes shifting from her brother to Director Go. "Depyunim." She lightly tilted her head to side, a smirk forming on her lips. "If you were having guest over, you should've informed me in advance."

"Yes, Samonim. My apologies." Director Go replied, sounding far too satisfied with himself for the woman's liking. "With my loyalty to the company—"

"Shut your MOUTH!" The woman viciously interrupted.

"Hey-heyyy, Noona." A chuckle. "I might end up deaf." Chairman Choi launched himself into a deep, guttural laugh, satisfaction oozing out of him.

"Kure. What's the occasion, for you to come all the way here?" Yoo Jin asked, maintaining a smile.

"Ah, well I came to set up a bomb." Chairman Choi tilted his head to the side, grinning at his announcement. "Watch." He spun on his feet, gesturing for him men to procede as he climbed down the stairs. "Ya, open it." The man kneeled beside the large case. "Okay..." He whispered softly, as he set up a timer. "Wait a second," he stopped himself, glancing around as he laughed. "Everybody's watching."

"Idiot." Je Ha whispered to himself as he watched the man hide the panel with his hand as he tapped a code in.

Chairman Choi went on laughing as he stood. "It's done. Will two hours be enough for a conversation?" Another stupid snicker accompanying his steps as he made his way to a white couch.

"So it appears you came to Cloud Nine?" Je Ha inquired.

"Oh, Kim Je Ha!" The Choi brother spoke, a hint of excitement in his voice. "How are you feeling? Still alive?" A giggle.

"Your family fight is quite intense." The former soldier simply said.

"Our family has always been like that." Choi Sung Woon replied, bringing a smile to his sister's lips. "Ah, Noona, answer the phone. It's my partner."

"Who is it?" Yoo Jin asked Mirror.

"It's a call from Assemblyman Park Gwan Soo." 

Of course it was. Sung Woon was an idiot. Sighing, Yoo Jin accepted the call. "Put it on."

"Aigoo." The Deputy chuckled. "Anyon— are greetings even in order? I'm not sure, Samonim."

The woman chuckled. "As you can see."

"This time, my knight seem to have captured the Queen."

Choi Yoo Jin laughed at the words, soft and evidently rehearsed. "And so, did you send him to kill me?"

"Aigo, aigo, why would you say something so frightening? Politicians should try to solve things through discussions, don't you think?"

Choi Yoo Jin hummed. "Ohhh, with a gun in one hand?"

The Assemblyman grew closer to the camera of his phone. "It's funnier that way." He laughed. "Like last time. You remember? When I almost died." He snickered.

"Kure, why do you want from me this time?" Yoo Jin asked, straight to the point.

"I just need Kim Seok Han's memory card." Park Gwan Soo replied. "So simple."

"And I, just want this Cloud Nine." Chairman Choi went on, gesturing around him.

"Mirror, turn the sound off." Je Ha requested. "Why don't you simply admit you don't have the memory card?"

The woman pressed her lips together, brows furrowing. "You, what will you do?"

"We need to catch him." Je Ha simply replied. "Mirror turn it back on."

Choi Yoo Jin sucked in an uncertain breath, chest rising and falling. Fine. She'd trust the kid again. "Oh." She chuckled softly, merely an exhale. "You're asking for something impossible only." She told Park Gwan Soo, an expression akin to amused on her features. A poorly contained desire to hunt down a prey and pull out its entrails, just to be sure she could. And show it to others. "First, I can't give you the memory card. Simply because I don't have it."

"What?" The Assemblyman asked, taken aback.

"Is she telling the truth?" Chairman Choi asked Director Go.

"Yes, that's the truth." He confirmed. "Kim Je Ha hasn't handed it over yet. If you give me a little time, I can find out where it is soon."

"Hey mercenary, you didn't hand it over to her yet?" Park Gwan Soo asked, directly addressing Je Ha.

"Ah ye. If that punk hadn't tried to steal it, it could have been in your hands by now." He spoke, merely sparing a glance to the overzealous mercenary. "I wouldn't have been hurt like this either." He went on, focusing back on the Assemblyman. "Why did you do that? You didn't want to pay the remaining payment?"

"No, no, no. Hey, no. My friend, that's a misunderstanding on your part. Would there be a reason for me to have him do that?" Park Kwan Soo chuckled. "It could just be emotional conflict between two young men like you and him. That man, he took so many beatings from this over the time." Je Ha smiled a little. "He was messed up big time."

"Right. He got beaten a lot, as you said."

"The remaining payment? Money? Then that punk..." Director Go seemed to be putting pieces together, Je Ha's betrayal sinking in. "Park Gwan Soo, he was on the same team..."

"Right." The Assemblyman laughed. "That guy, I hired him." While most men were busy smiling to themselves in satisfaction, they failed to see the very same expression on Choi Yoo Jin's face. "Oh, Samonim, then were you just bluffing to the consortium?" Park Gwan Soo laughed. "Yes?"

"I'm sorry about this." Je He said, looking at Choi Yoo Jin.

"You dirty traitors..." Choi Yoo Jin spoke, addressing the room as a whole. Her eyes focused on Je Ha.

_What are you going to do? Her gaze asked._

"That's why I told you not to mess with Anna." Je Ha uttered.

_I have to catch Park Gwan Soo. His eyes replied._

"Woah, that punk is a scary one." The deputy declared, sounding genuinely impressed.

"Aigo, our poor Samonim." Director Go spoke. "She had no idea and that crush..."

"So is the memory card lost?" Park Gwan Soo inquired.

"No. I'm keeping it safe." The former soldier replied. Of course, it was followed by the Assemblyman asking for it. And as expected from a mercenary, Je Ha asked for the remainder of his money. Once a bonus was promised, he swore to deliver it.

"Now, my request is finished. I shall leave you brother and sister to enjoy the rest of your conversation. Then goodbye." He waved, and the call ended.

Worried filled the woman's eyes when Je Ha struggled to stand. She turned to face him fully but took no step in his direction, despite something shameful in her whispering to go and help him. A voice so muffled she sometimes wondered how she still managed to hear it, that silly heart of hers. It was always destabilizing, to remember that it was beating still. She watched, as he slipped on his jacket, a broad back turned away from her. Like most men that had mattered in her life.

"Mirror, sound turn off." Je Ha ordered.

"Do you think you can do it, in your condition?" The woman asked, turning away from the man that faced her. Instead, she looked ahead at the emptiness, where once stood the heart of her power.

"Send Manager Ju to the scene." He ordered, like he was allowed to. She hummed in agreement. "Also, I'm not coming back." He knew those words would force her to look. To look and see him, truly. Hopefully. Their eyes met. Their gazes just as intense as every other time. The male's lips parted for a second before they closed again. "Be ready to leave it all behind, be ready to throw Cloud Nine away, be ready to be happier than now."

"I can't throw Mirror away. Because Mirror is, me."

Oh, _those words_. That's what they'd meant. She'd quite literally given herself to him. He lowered his gaze. "There's more to you than power. Just walk out of here. As for Park Gwan Soo and Chairman Choi, I, will defeat them by myself." He spoke, before turning away, moving closer to the door.

"We... At a better time..." She spoke, echoing the words she'd said the first time they'd met. "And in better circumstances... With a better fate... Should have met." She paused, bringing a hand to her chest. "Farewell."

Je Ha lowered his head, sensing her gaze on his back. "Mirror, turn back on." He squared his shoulders. "You guys, back off. And Mirror, when I leave this room, close the door. Quickly."

"Dae. Quickly." The A.I replied.

"Open." Upon hearing the male's order, the door slid open for Kim Je Ha to walk out. He sighed when a mercenary approached. "Don't open your mouth. Let's just go there."

~*~

Je Ha got out of the car as soon as they arrived on the Parking of the Hospital St Thomas. He marched to the location of the memory card, retrieving it with ease and pocketing it before he turned to face the mercenary. Easily, did he block the hit he knew was coming before kneeing the man in the stomach. As the mercenary was hunched over, Je Ha punched him in the face, watching him fall. He fell silently in the night, his head hitting the pavement enough to knock him off. Huffing as he bent forward, Je Ha retrieved the mercenary's phone to call the Deputy. "So where should I bring this?"

"It's you Je Ha?" The Assemblyman inquired, taken aback. "What about the guy next to you?"

"He's here. What to do? He's off for a while..." Je Ha waited for a beat. "What about the money? Did you prepare it?"

"Ah yeah, yeah, o-of-of course!"

"Great. I just need to go to the place where your safe is then, right?"

"Ah y-yes, yes. I'll wait for your there." The Deputy replied and Je Ha hung up.

The male started for Chief Ju with his gaze. The man seemed nowhere to be seen. But a car was near. A black, expansive car with a license plate number he recognized. Chuckling, he marched to the car and opened the door, taking a seat right next to Deputy Jang Se Joon. "Your wife is dying. And you will loudly claim to be a puppet still. I have no time for this." He wet his bottom lip. "You know what I've learnt by spending so much time beside your wife and your daughter? It's that Choi Yoo Jin has done more for Anna's safety than you ever did. I have seen her cry upon hearing that Anna wished for her death. I have seen her embrace that kid when she had a panic attack. I have seen her go out of her way to retrieve Anna when she believed she was unsafe. But you? You've flip flopped your way around, pretending to care for your daughter but the only time you met her, you asked her, to protect you. Just like your wife constantly does. Were it not for Choi Yoo Jin revealing who she truly was, she'd still be a secret, wouldn't she? Answer me truthfully, were you ever planning to be her father? You said when you'd be President you'd do things right. But perhaps, you should do things right to get to be President."

"Sergeant Kim..." Manager Ju threatened, pointing a gun at his face.

"Don't bother." He left the memory card there. "Just get your wife on the line." He told Deputy Jang. The man rose an eyebrow but obeyed, handing the phone to Je Ha.

"Yes?" Came Samonim's voice. Jovial. Chairman Choi was listening.

"It's me." Je Ha informed. "I'm going to your house. Now that Park Gwan Soo knows I have the card, I suspect he'll send men there to get Anna."

"Do you need back up?" Choi Yoo Jin asked, her tone light. He could tell she was smiling at her brother in utter arrogance.

"Send what you can." I know you might need some too, was implied.

"Anna's safe for now." Yoo Jin said. "Make sure she remains so."

"I will." He glanced towards Deputy Jang, and the man ordered to his driver to start the car. "Cut the sound."

"Mirror, turn off the speakers." Choi Yoo Jin said.

"The bomb, it can't be disarmed. Park Gwan Soo tricked your brother."

Yoo Jin chuckled. "Yeah, I heard it the first time you said so."

Je Ha swallowed at the implications, gaze lowering as tears welled in his eyes. "Then why won't you leave?" The former soldier heard the Deputy chuckle beside him.

"Pass me my husband." Yoo Jin replied instead.

Je Ha handed the phone back to its owner before looking out the window. The car raced around the streets, the path growing familiar as they grew closer to the Deputy's house. He squeezed his eyes shut when he heard the man say: "You are exactly how my wife should be."

"We're here." Manager Ju informed as they hastily parked the car. Two black vans were gathered right in front of the doors of the house. Park Gwan Soo didn't even bother with discretion anymore. "What should we do?"

"I have a consortium to meet." The Deputy replied. "Get out." He told Je Ha.

The young man snarled disgust passing in his gaze. "I don't have a weapon."

"I know you don't need one." The Deputy replied. "Now get out or I'm driving off with you in the car." Shaking his head in disbelief, Je Ha pushed the door of the car open, exiting it.

A shot was heard. Followed by another, making the male rush to the doors. He pushed them open, finding the usual guardians dead and rushed inside the property. As soon as he stepped inside the living room, he was met with a gun. Grabbing the person's wrist, he lifted it up towards the ceiling, twisting their wrist in the process. Then punched the man in the throat, sending him stumbling back. A swift kick in a circular motion landed on the man's face, sending him to the ground for good.

After clearing the living room, the male retrieved an earpiece on the body of one of his fellow JSS worker. "J4," He whispered. "J4 do you copy?" The male sighed with relief, eyes falling shut as a timid yes was whispered back. "Are you with Anna? Is she safe?"

"Yes. Chief Kim made sure Anna, the cooking ahjumma, K1 and I made it to the safe room." The female informed.

"Good." Je Ha whispered. "Stay right where you are until I tell you to get out. I don't think they know where that is yet." And neither did he. But odds were, this was somewhere easy to access for Choi Yoo Jin. But not obvious enough for anyone to just stumble upon. That ruled out her office on the ground floor. And her room too. Where the hell in this house did that woman ever feel safe? Sighing, Je Ha chose to yell: "CHIEF KIM! Chief Kim where are you?!" Hoping to catch the attention of whomever else was in the room, as he marched through a long corridor towards Choi Yoo Jin's office. Loud footsteps were heard above him, rushing down the staircase. So there were, more men. Stealth and playing the clock were his only way at survival, judging by the blood seeping through the front of his shirt. "Come on," He whispered softly, choosing to believe in Choi Yoo Jin's ability to twist fate. Of course, he wasn't disappointed. JSS men rushed inside the house as if to answer to his silent prayers.

"Choi Yoo Jin..." He whispered, a smile appearing on his features. The male shook his head, pushing the door of the office open as he and the rest of the men were clearing the house. He frowned when he found Chief Kim there, sitting on the floor against the impressive wall bookcase. Her right leg, abdomen and left shoulder bleeding out.

"Anna..." The woman whispered with difficulty. "She's, she's, she's safe." She lifted up a hand that held a gun with difficulty.

Je Ha glanced around the room, finding seven other bodies. Clearly, several people had thought the entrance to the safe room was near. As expected. And as expected too, Chief Kim stood as a shield. He sighed, walking out to call other men to help the woman. Then returned, and kneeled beside her. "Where is your phone?" He asked. She gestured at the desk, and he found it there, facing the seat. So she had sat. He couldn't blame her. So Je Ha simply handed her the phone, so she could call her boss herself, so she could be told she did well. A stretcher was coming. She'd live.

"Samonim." Chief Kim smiled, just saying the word. "Anna's safe. The house is secured." She spoke as though she was well, voice unwavering and fond. Her smile widened for a second. "Yes, I promise I'll live." It faded when she handed the phone to Je Ha.

"Yes, Samonim?"

"Is she truly okay? Anna, is she safe?" Choi Yoo Jin asked, sounding genuinely worried.

"Yes." Je Ha replied, a faint smile on his lips.

"Good. My husband is on his way to the consortium. We'll have the press and the police on our side soon. We can crush him, Park Gwan Soo. Steal his dream and watch him wither. I know you could've used the key and revealed everything. You didn't, so I won't let you down."

"Are you walking out alive then?" Je Ha asked.

Yoo Jin chuckled. "It'll probably the first time in over twelve years that I'm happy at the prospect of going home." She replied with a honesty that surprised the both of them.

"Come home then." Je Ha spoke, gaze trailing after Chief Kim as a stretcher led her out. "I'm handing the phone back to Chief Kim. She really did a good job. You should tell her that."

"I already did." Choi Yoo Jin replied.

"Do it again. She deserves it."

"I will. Hand over the phone." He did as he was ordered for once. And surprised himself when he smiled upon seeing the chief secretary's face lit up.

"K2, can we come out?" Anna's voice came through.

"The house is full of men still. Wait until I say it's safe. I don't think the room should be revealed to that many people." Je Ha replied, knowing most people on the frequency would hear, but not caring about it.

"Alright, copied." She replied, making the former soldier smile.

Exiting Yoo Jin's office, he joined the rest of the men gathered in the living room. "You should go to the infirmary." The team leader informed.

"Hyung, there's a bomb in Cloud 9. We need to evacuate the building."

The team leader's eyes widened at the news. "Everybody," He spoke in his earpiece. "we're going back to HQ. There's a bomb in Cloud 9." At the words, most men seem to rush towards the exit of the property. "G3, M1, B2, P5 and H7 remain on site." The team leader added, as a safety measure. Je Ha trailed behind him, ignoring the pain in his side as he climbed in one of the vans.

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" The team leader asked.

"Mhmm." Je Ha hummed as he mentally tried to review his actions. Anna was safe. So Park Gwan Soo was out of ammo. He couldn't use her to trade the memory card. And Choi Yoo Jin basically owned the men of the consortium now, didn't she? Could Deputy Jang be trusted? Most likely. He knew he needed her to be elected. Thus the only remaining problem was Choi Sung Won. The bomb no longer was one, it served a purpose now. It was chasing Choi Yoo Jin away from the cage she'd built around herself. But her brother, he was still a threat. A desperate man who hadn't hesitated to shoot two people to save his pathetic life. **The gun**. He'd forgotten the gun. If Yoo Jin walked out of that glass room with her taunting flair, she was done for. And he had no way of contacting her. No way to know. Fingers tangling in his hair, the man's squeezed his eyes shut, waiting only for the car to stop and his agony to end.

_She couldn't die again_.

Je Ha thought about the woman that wept when Anna hurled at him to kill her. The woman that looked at him with utter disbelief when he chose to safe her life. The woman that fell back onto her seat, soaked and shaky at her aunt's funeral. The woman that was strong and harsh because she had forgotten she could be anything else. The woman that commanded and explained with a clinical detachment how she could lead others to suicide. The woman that claimed to have been a victim once. The woman he knew, hadn't kill Eom Hye Rin but lived with that burden. The woman that told him to come back to her alive and accepted his failures. The woman that constantly tried to caress a wolf and shrugged it off every time her hand was bitten, so accustomed to the pain that it seemed irrelevant. The woman that he called a friend though their relationship couldn't quite be framed like that. He so easily forgot how he went to war with her. But he knew, that he certainly didn't want to see her defeated.

~*~

The van parked, JSS men rushing out to find that Choi Yoo Jin had send others to clear the area. Je Ha, least surprised of all, marched past the mess and straight to the elevator. To Cloud 9. Of course, the elevators were deactivated. Sighing, he sought out for familiar faces and decided to enlist them for help. It turns out Master Song was awaiting for him. "Let's go to level B. It's the closest we can get." The man intimated, rushing towards a staircase. Silently, Je Ha followed, wondering how the old man knew.

With the help of the team leader and Master Song, he set up a cord and got into a harness that would take him to Cloud 9. He'd made sure to warn the men that Choi Sung Won would probably be the one coming, thus to be ready to arrest him.

Then Kim Je Ha ran. Rage and determination fueled, he ran with all he had left. The male rushed inside the room, to find Yoo Jin sitting atop of the stairs, leaning against the glass room's doors. The woman was clutching her side and looking at her brother who held a gun.

"Noona!" He spoke angrily. "All my life, all my life I had to live following someone else's orders. Just so I could keep my position. But you? You want to humiliate me? You want to take it away? You want to have it all?!"

Yoo Jin's eyes widened when she saw Je Ha enter the room but she caught herself and refocused on her brother as the male crawled behind him. "Have it all?" She chuckled. "I'll have it all when I take back my father's entreprise."

"Noona...." He shook his head in disapproval, disappointment making him tsk over and over. "Don't be like that. You don't need JB. You have the JSS, you'll have the Blue House. Why can't I just keep JB? What would it cost—" An arm wrapped around the man's throat. And instinctively Sung Won dropped the gun to tug at the arm with his two hands. But Je Ha kept a firm grip. Chairman Choi resorted to elbowing him on the side, where his wound was. Je Ha recoiled, howling in pain. Sung Won scrambled to get the gun back. He aimed at the other man. "If you're here it means you found a way in. So there's a way out. Quickly. Talk or I'll shoot you."

"There is." Je Ha easily replied, eyes quasi-imperceptibly narrowing as he saw Yoo Jin force herself back on her feet, a heel in one hand. "There's a harness in the elevator." He explained, watching the woman climb down the stairs. "Just put it on and tug it twice and you'll be dragged up."

"Thank you." Sung Won replied, grinning. Before he could shoot the former soldier as intended, he was whacked in the head with the makeshift weapon. The stiletto heel digging into his head. He fell forward, revealing a trembling Yoo Jin.

The woman let out a short breath, and another. Those easily turned into whimpers as tears started to roll down her cheeks. Je Ha marched to her. "Yoo Jin-shi." He attempted, holding out a hand for the woman. "Let's get out alive. And go home." Choi Yoo Jin's eyes fell on the offered hand, but she remained unable to move. Unable to accept the offered solace. Undeserving of it. "Please," Je Ha begged. "I'm not going out without you. Do you not want me to live?" The woman's chin trembled at the words. She glanced behind her, at the work of a lifetime, at the kind of power few ever possessed or knew how to wield. Then back to Je Ha, who was little more than a young man with pipe dreams. She took the hand offered to her, allowing him to lead her out of the cage she built for herself.

Neither ran. She had an arm wrapped around him middle, supporting him as she clutched her own abdomen. And he was there, tangible, present, close. Enough to keep her going. "You're bleeding out." Je Ha said. "You're bleeding out and still, you're the one supporting me."

"Well, you're bleeding out too." She replied, making him chuckle.

Silence accompanied them the rest of the way to the elevator. They made it in. And they closed the door. Choi Yoo Jin didn't ask any inane question. She was too intelligent for that. And so, she was the one to yell to the men to start shooting. Because the elevator could still go down. And there was a safe space there. Only then, did the woman allow herself to crumble, barefoot and exhausted, she leant against a wall and slid to the floor. Je Ha sat next to her. Their eyes met. Like they'd done so many times before. With an intensity hard to ignore. So this time, he didn't ignore it. Instead, he took ahold of her hand and reverently brought it to his lips. There was a certain satisfaction in seeing someone to collected and powerful abandon herself. Yoo Jin's lips parted, disbelief in her gaze but such raw hopefulness too. The male smiled, reaching out to so something he'd been dying to do since he met her : Freeing her hair from that unnecessarily elaborated updo. "Much better." He declared, hand resting against the back of her neck. Closing her eyes, Yoo Jin grew daring too. She leant in, to gently press her lips against the younger man's. Her lips curled up when they parted from him. She'd been met halfway.

_The elevator started moving._

_They'd make it out alive._

~*~

_They made it out alive._

_Honestly, Je Ha hadn't thought much further than that_.

The transport to the hospital had gone okay, he'd had the opportunity to bark orders at the men remaining in the house and then called J4 to tell her it was finally safe. Then he'd rested. Really rested, as the sirens went off and he was driven away.

When he woke up, Anna was sitting on a chair next to his bed. Mi Ran and Song Gyu were sharing a couch next to her. She was awake, he was asleep. J4 rose to her feet as soon as she saw that Je Ha opened his eyes. The former soldier offered a lazy smile as she approached his bed. "How are you?" She asked gently.

"Yoo Jin-shi, I mean, Samonim. How is she?" He asked in lieu of a reply.

"Samonim's surgery went fine. She's lost a lot of blood but the transfusion went okay. She's suffering from a little iron-deficiency anemia so they're keeping her under watch." Mi Ran replied.

"And me? Can I be discharged?" Je Ha inquired.

"Yeah. Your wound's healing well. If you don't mess up the stitches again, you should be okay." His coworker replied, a small smile tugging on her lips.

Je Ha chuckled as he sat up on the bed, a smile wouldn't quite settle on his features but he seemed relaxed enough. "How long were you all here?" He asked.

"We've arrived late night yesterday. Team Leader informed us of what happened and made sure we were alone in the house when we exited the safe room. Anna insisted to come here right away."

The former soldier nodded at the given informations. "Okay." His eyes traveled to the young woman, a girl really. An innocence he couldn't fully understand or match but surely had appreciated to find comfort in. Perhaps that was why Yoo Jin had assigned him there. He would harm only to protect, and wouldn't have to kill. He didn't even carry a gun around. And the house's safety was good enough to have been compromised only once. "Damnit." The male huffed softly, shaking his head. Of course, his assignment hadn't randomly been chosen.

Fondness appeared in the male's gaze as Anna slowly opened her eyes, a dazed but pleased expression settling in her features. Once she realized that she truly was awake, the young woman sprung on her feet. "You're awake." She happily declared, approaching the bed. She brought a hand to his right cheek before carefully leaning in to press a kiss to the other one. Je Ha's eyes fell shut at the fluttering sensation. "Is it hurting anywhere?"

"No." He rasped out, reopening his eyes to look at her. "Don't worry."

The female nodded, smiling fondly at him. Her hand trailed to his forehead, pushing away strands of hair to take a good look into his eyes. "You saved me." She let out a short, chuckle-like breath of relief. "And you saved her too..." She paused, breathing in. "I'm not mad. I just realized that you could be on both of your sides. Hers. And mine. Is that what you want?"

Je Ha's lips parted, no words coming out as he watched the female. Anna pressed her lips together for a couple of seconds before chuckling. "It's okay. I don't think there really are sides anymore. I can't forgive her, but I can, choose not to hate her. And as long as I'll have you to protect me, I know I'll be fine."

"Anna-ya..." The male whispered, gratefulness passing in his features. "I'm not planning to ever stop being there when you need me. I just don't think we did things quite right. I'm glad I helped you open yourself to the world. And I'm incredibly grateful you did the very same for me. But as you grow to need me less and less, I want you to be able to explore all the things you couldn't before. And live a life. I did too before I met you. You deserve that much."

Anna nodded, slight tremors in her chin as tears welled in her eyes. "Can we still go to Barcelona together?"

Je Ha nodded, a smile gracing his lips. "I want to be in your life. As long as you'll have me. I love you." Anna returned the smile, with that youthful acceptance of hers. She wanted to be loved. Period. The way hadn't grown to matter yet. He easily could grant her that much. She was, lovable. Inspiring in her strength, and easy to be drawn to. A bright young woman who no longer feared the world. She'd have it at her feet soon. He knew. Despite the poor reputation of her mother.

~*~

They went to Barcelone. And Paris. Anna chose to stay there. Je Ha went back to Seoul. J4, K1 and the cooking Ahjumma were thrilled to remain by the girl's side. A little family. He didn't quite fit in that picture. But he loved to be able to look back at it.

As soon as he stepped out of the airport, Manager Ju was by his side. "Welcome home."

"Aish," The rehabilitated soldier stilled in his steps. "I swear I'm seriously considering going back right now. Don't even."

Manager Ju chuckled, earning himself a defiant glare. "It's not like that. I don't have any job for you." Je Ha's eyes subtly narrowed at the words. The younger male lightly tilting his head to the side. That was as much of an invitation to talk as the Manager would get. "Deputy Jang wants to see you."

"Isn't it President Jang already?" Je Ha asked, a certain bitterness in his voice.

"Not yet." Manager Ju replied, heaving a soft sigh of frustration. "But beside the point. He's in the car. We'll take you wherever you want to go." Je Ha visibly narrowed his eyes at the words, distrust writing itself on his features. "It's about Samonim."

"Lead the way." The former bodyguard told his Sunbae. Manager Ju nodded, leading the two of them to a black car with tinted windows. A bigger, shinier model. Exactly the Deputy's type. Definitely not something his wife would feel comfortable in. Oozing expensiveness for the sake of it, and uncomfortable luxury. "He better not have had any woman lay where I'm about to sit." He told his Sunbae who only chuckled as he held the door open for the younger man.

"Kim Je Ha." The Deputy spoke, grinning as the younger male stepped in.

"Jang Se Joon." He replied just as easily, dropping official titles and formalities.

The Assemblyman chose to chuckle. "My wife has left me." Je Ha brought his hand to the car's door handle. "I just wanted to thank you." He paused. "I know it's thanks to you that I have all I do now. You didn't fail me."

"And yet, you failed your daughter." The former JSS bodyguard replied. "The train station." He told the car driver. Then expectantly looked at Manager Ju. A single nod of the older man got the car to start.

"Anna doesn't need me." Deputy Jang replied honestly, looking out the window. "Nobody does these days."

"Am I supposed to feel for you?"

The Assemblyman laughed, short and guttural. "Funny." His eyes trailed back to Je Ha. "She really left, you know, Yoo Jin-ah. She apologized. And she left because she felt stupid."

Je Ha narrowed his eyes. "What for?"

"For our lives." Jang Se Joon replied honestly. "For forcing us into this partnership. For believing there's a kind of love that never dies. For Eom Hye Rin." The Deputy chuckled when he saw the younger man tense. "So you truly believed she was innocent? Must be nice." The older man's features sobered upon seeing the disappointment contort Je Ha's features. It was as if everything he'd believed in so far had been wrong. As if someone still believed there was good to be preserved in his wife. "She didn't kill her." The Deputy felt compelled to clarify. "But she didn't save her either."

"She adored you too much."

"Ah." The Deputy let out, eyebrows raising. "Perhaps it is so."

"What's the story here?"

"What story?"

"The one you're telling the press to justify your wife's absence so close to election dates."

"Oh." Deputy Jang chuckled. "She's on a retreat. After everything she's been through, she deserves the rest. It was difficult to convince her, of course. Because she loves me that much. And I dearly miss my homemade breakfasts. But I refuse to expose my wife to further terrorizing from my enemies. Her location thus, must remain a secret to let her fully recover." He grinned. "Of course, the press is helping out thanks to that little memory card you collected for me. And the nation has decided to embrace me, their selfless servant who sacrificed his true love for their benefit."

"Funny how still, she ranks better in approval polls than you do." Je Ha carelessly let out, his tone inconspicuous but his words loaded. "Truly, if you died today, she'd surely be President tomorrow." The younger male declared, keeping the lightness in his voice as a faint smile made his lips curl for a couple of seconds.

Assembly Jang laughed. "True, true. But she could never kill me."

"No. She couldn't. But usually it's the underlings that carry guns anyway." Je Ha replied.

"Are you threatening me?"

"No." Je Ha replied. "This is our first meeting since I returned. Consider this a warning. I don't issue two of those."

Jang Se Joon laughed. "She wants a divorce you know, my perfect wife. It's all she asks for. Her freedom. It's in my hands now. She's in my hands, now." Je Ha's jaw clenched. "Oh don't be like that. I'm not planning to deny her forever. After the elections sounds like the perfect period to start thinking about this. If she still wants it by then."

The car parked in front of the train station. "Where is she now?"

"I never asked. Maybe Jeju Island." He shrugged. "Maybe Bolseom. Does it matter?"

Je Ha chuckled, a soft sound that could easily be mistaken with an exhale of air. "Manager Ju, I have a final request before I leave this car, could you call Chief Kim for me?"

The older male glanced at the Deputy, who nodded. He retrieved his phone in the inside pocket of his suit jacket and contacted the woman. Then handed the phone to Je Ha. "Yes?" Came the female's voice. She had an ability to sound irritated and extremely busy. Which she probably was.

"It's me."

"Oh for heaven's sake." The woman huffed. "I'm too busy for this. Cheongsando." With those words, she hung up.

Je Ha pushed the door of the car open. "Ah yeah, about killing her..." He chuckled. "I'm declining that job offer. And, honestly, I'd rather have a tooth pulled out without anesthesia than work for you. In any way, shape or form."The Deputy laughed as Je Ha retrieved his duffle bag. The sound still ringing out when he closed the car's door.

~*~

Cheongsando's small population made it far too easy to single out newcomers. Especially those who lived in expensive houses and had been escorted by a security detail. A small talk with an ajumeoni at the market and the former soldier had found the woman he was looking for. The nice one that looked like a celebrity and always wore sunglasses and hats. He seriously hoped those hats were worn with her hair down. Chuckling to himself, the male thanked the woman, and bought a couple of figs to eat along the way. He was in no rush after all. He wasn't even an expected guest. And the security detailed seemed to have left once she'd settled in. Her husband would probably love to be widowed early. And she'd earned that much peace anyway. This would be a walk in the park.

It didn't end up to be a walk in the park. It was a difficult walk, where every time he asked, the way was always further up. And the sun seemed to only shine brighter as he walked. He should've stolen the Vespa he saw at the market. Slipping his backpack off of his shoulders, the male took off his shirt, keeping only the white tank top underneath it. He tied the linen piece of fabric around his waist and readjusted his backpack. "She had to be able to see it all." He commented, both amused and frustrated.

When the house finally came to sight, the sun was disappearing, and so was his will to continue. But there didn't seem to be a way up anymore. And neither was there a name on the mail box. Choosing to ignore the main door, he went instead for the garden, hoping to find a bay window on the back of the house. Rich people liked their bay windows. Of course there was one. Half opened and revealing the back of a woman pouring herself a glass of wine. Je Ha smiled as he snuck in, their first encounter starkly coming to mind. 

"I'm announcing myself so you don't drop a glass of wine." He loudly declared, watching the woman's back as she tensed. Then braced herself, probably even smoothened inexistent folds on her dress. Then carefully, she turned to face him.

"I didn't expect any guest." Yoo Jin spoke, uncertainty in her gaze. The _'certainly not you'_ was implied.

"Mhmm. Except maybe Chief Kim?"

"Not today, no." The woman replied earnestly. "She calls everyday under the pretense of updating me."

Je Ha chuckled, unsure of what to say regarding that particular matter. "Why?" He chose to ask instead.

"Why did I leave?"

"Yes. Why did you? Your husband, did you truly just give it all to him?" He inquired, confused still.

Yoo Jin chuckled, the soft sound barely above a pleasant exhale of air. "The Presidency and his daughter. I suppose yes, there isn't much more I can give him. Except his freedom. But he doesn't want it yet."

Je Ha hummed. He knew. The Deputy had told him so. "Well, you have JB now."

"Right." A rehearsed chuckle that time, louder, more mocking as she nodded her head a few times. Careful movements. "You really thought I wanted it, didn't you? But, the truth is, I just wanted to prove my father I could take it. Take that love he refused me, make it mine. As you can see by the state of my matrimony, my daddy issues might've led me on the very wrong path." She admitted, so shamelessly. So honest. A peculiar sight. More threatening in a way, than her white lies and half-truths. Blunt honesty always hit harder. "I'll sell JB. And with the money, I'll establish myself. My own company." She smiled. "Probably a crisis management and communication firm. I'm too old to entirely reconvert."

Je Ha chuckled, subdued but amused. "What about the JSS? Will they merge with that new company?"

"Mhhmm, right. They're still mine." Yoo Jin acknowledged, running an index along the rim of her wine glass. "I fear I'm a little overzealous when it comes to security so if I want to remain in the legality those firms should stay separated. Do you want it? I mean, I wouldn't mind." She shrugged. "Cloud 9 was never my cage, you know. It was my home. And that house, I shared with Se Joon-ah, was my golden cage. Those wedding bands, were my most painful bonds. Every glance at my ring is a reminder of a love I couldn't forget because he still stood so close." She sighed softly, bringing her free hand to her cheek, and laughed at her own naivety. The hand she desperately sought caress from, struck her. And yet, she couldn't bring herself to destroy him. Even handing instead, all the power she had left.

Je Ha reached out, wiping away a tear that had rolled down. Their eyes met. The electric tension returned full intensity, their lips parting to say something and eager to met too. She turned away. He let his hand fall by his side.

"Do you love him still?" The younger male asked.

"Am I not expected to?" Yoo Jin asked, a tinge of amusement in her tone. "A husband may stray but a wife? She is expected to remain pure and blameless."

"I wouldn't quite associate those words with you." Je Ha argued, his tone more teasing than intended. The male squared his shoulders, pocketing his hands in his pants.

The woman hummed softly. "Fair enough." She settled for, unable to simply admit that he was right. Because then, she couldn't be a Raniya of any sort. And if she wasn't even an ounce innocent, could the man that stood in front of her care for her? "But I never..." She looked down at her glass, making the velvet liquid swirl. "I haven't been with anyone else but him." Yoo Jin admitted. Following those words, the woman hurriedly downed the glass she held. "I couldn't look at anyone else but him until very recently anyway." Came the admission she'd braced herself for. When her gaze returned to Je Ha's, she found the man intently looking at her. Smiling tentatively, she took a step closer to him before stopping herself. "What are you doing here?"

"Coming back alive." He replied, further closing the distance between them. _Coming back to you_ , was implied.

"That's in your plans now?" Choi Yoo Jin asked, careful not to display too much. Anticipation and hope only ever led to heartbreak.

"Actually, I don't have any plans. I didn't think further than now." He honestly replied, taking another careful step closer to the woman. Now they stood close enough to touch if they wanted. But both were far too uncertain to know if they actually could. They were trapped in an instant, a maybe between them and a yes on the tip of their tongue. Despite being two smart people, they failed to realize that both were ready to offer the same answer to a dangerous question.

Yoo Jin turned away first. Choosing not to ask any questions she feared the answer too, Kim Je Ha chose to act. Gently, did he guide her gaze back to him before leaning in, eyes shut as he hoped to be met halfway. She did meet him, eagerly getting on her toes to press her lips against his, clutching the front of his ridiculously revealing white tank top. The male's hand shifted, fingers tangling in loose her as he brought her closer. Much like most of their interactions, that kiss was electric, a promise to so much more as they fought for dominion, lips bruising one another and teeth grazing skin until they needed to breathe. "Damnit." Je Ha muttered, distancing himself from the woman to get a good look at her. She was far too composed still for his liking, with her little knowing smirk. Years of experience certainly did wonders regarding certain aspects. "Damnit." The male repeated, his hand trailing along her back to bring her closer. He needed to see that utter abandon on her features again. That quasi epiphany like expression that he'd seen once in that elevator. He just... The former soldier's hands settled under her thighs. And he saw panic fill her gaze. "Trust me. We're friends, right?" That earned him a chuckle as he lifted her up, leading her to the kitchen's island.

Her passivity ended the moment the cold of the ivory came into contact with her skin. Yoo Jin smirked, her hands unwrapping from around his neck. She stopped him when he tried to tug on the hem of his shirt, removing his hands before tightening the grip of her legs around his. Control freak. Darn control freak, Je Ha thought as she slowly slid her hands against his skin, lifting his shirt up at a ridiculous pace. Finally, she freed him, laughing softly as she admired him. A part of her truly wondered how they'd ended up here. That voice fell shut when he pressed his lips against hers again.

It was fast in ways neither of them had expected. But also satisfying beyond measures for both of them, for very different reasons. They remained tangled together, her panting softly against him as he enjoyed the bliss of an high, eyes shut. He hadn't seen the abandon. Hadn't searched for it much, too focused on regarding his release. He'd probably have to search for it again. Maybe more thoroughly. It's all about experiences after all. "If you still don't have plan," She whispered. "these days I'm fairly free too." They both laughed.

**FIN.**


End file.
